One and Only 3 ; George Weasley

261

"You'll never forget about me, Vivi!" his voice rang though the room as they dragged him out of court. Dad was holding me tight as I was crying. "I'll be there in your dreams! In your nightmares and everyone in Slytherin will hate you for getting rid of their Quidditch captain!"

"Vivi?" mum asked when I had been standing by the door to the flat for the last five minutes. I couldn't comprehend what the fuck just happened. He didn't get as deserved. He should've gotten more. "Sweetheart? Are you okay? Maybe you should take a nap. Get some rest."

"How did he only get five months?" I asked and looked at my parents and my uncle who stood in the kitchen. "After all that he did. How did he only get five months? He'll be out again in July!"

"We know." dad said. "It is unfair and if I could change anything, I would but it isn't up to us, it isn't up to Shacklebolt. It's up to..."

"The jury, I know!" I spat. "It– it doesn't make any sense. He almost killed me. What he did was attempted murder and he gets away with five fucking months in Azkaban."

The jury only found Luke guilty in rape and assault. Not torture. They can't "prove" that he cut those words into my skin. That he cut into my arms because I had self-harmed myself. They couldn't "prove" that the burn marks were from him because I had fucking harmed myself in the past. They gave him five months so in July he'll be a free man. Free to do whatever the fuck he wants while I have to be haunted by this. I have to go through therapy, do so much work to get over the damage he did and he... he probably finds himself a career, gets married eventually, have a bunch of kids. I won't ever be able to do that because I can't ever be with someone again. Not after that. After him.

Mum was starting to make my lunch which I dreaded.

One Turkey sandwich with one slice of cheese and carrots with celery and low fat ranch dressing. I hated ranch dressing but madam Blackwood had made my eating plan herself so I could gain, and I was gaining. I was almost back to my normal weight.

In one sudden movement, I sprinted up the stairs and into my room, letting the door slam behind me. It was unfair. He should've gotten years but he got months.

I felt my throat tighten and it felt like I couldn't breathe. I closed my eyes, trying to swallow but even that seemed too hard, as if I couldn't swallow my saliva properly. My body was shaking and I tried to relax but it wasn't helping.

My heart was pounding and I could feel it against my rib cage.

"The defendant has been sentenced to five months in Azkaban."

Five month. Five fucking months is not enough. He needs to pay. He needs to pay and I need to not worry about meeting him on the street in five months while I'm still traumatized from this.

My head started pounding too and now my chest tightened. The room started spinning and I backed up against the corner of my room, sliding down until I sat on the floor with my knees pulled up to my chest and my arms wrapped around them.

I squeezed my eyes shut.

Please make it stop. Please make it stop.

My fingers were tingling and I had the feeling that I was going to have a heart attack any moment and drop dead.

Knock knock

The faint sound of knocking hit my ears. It sounded so far away but I knew it came from my door.

"Vivi? Can I come in?" Uncle Fred.

My hands went up to cover my ears, trying to shut everything out so that I could focus on this to stop. Focus on my heart to slow down, for my throat to loosen up again so I could breathe.

"Vivi?"

My door creaked as it opened and there was a moment of complete silence except from my heavy breathing, and then I could feel my uncle rush over while mumbling something under his breath.

"Hey." He told me in a calming tone, wrapping an arm around me. "It's okay. You're okay."

He rubbed my arm in a comforting way while repeating the world. "You're okay."

"Vivi, can you hear me?" He asked when his words didn't help. "Are you listening to me? You don't have to speak. Just nod."

I nodded slightly.

"Okay. Good. Listen to me, Vivi. You need to concentrate on your breathing, alright?" He moved to sit in front of me and gently grabbed my arms to pull them down from my ears so he could hold them. "Just do what I do."

He took a deep breath, guiding me to do the same and I tried. I tried so hard, though it felt impossible. He kept guiding me to focus on my breathing and eventually it slowed down, the same with my heart rate.

When I finally felt like I was back on earth, I wiped my cheeks and a sob left my lips.

"I'm sorry." I cried before I hid my face. "I don't know what happened."

"You shouldn't be apologizing." He told me. "You had a panic attack. They're common when it comes to stress, anxiety and especially PTSD. Your mum had a few too when she was... no not your age. She was a bit older 'cause we lived in this flat and it happened in the kitchen. She must've been eighteen or— no I definitely think she was nineteen."

I looked at him as he struggled to get his facts right and then he looked at me again with a soft smile. "Anyway. They are uncomfortable but they are not dangerous. Your brain sends signals out to your body that there is a danger, even though there isn't, but you're okay now, right?"

I nodded.

"Good." He says down next to me again. "I know it sucks. Luke should have gotten at least five to ten years for what he did to you but the system sucks and unfortunately we can't do anything about it."

"But what if he goes back to redo his last year... next year?"

"I'm not sure Hogwarts will let him come back after he did most of those things to you on school grounds."

"Okay." I breathed. I was kinda relieved but still so pissed that he only got five months.